The following is a listing of Blackboard Original frequently asked questions (FAQs) by instructors. The questions have been organized into several groupings, which can be clicked on to jump to the section for viewing.

• Copy and/or Merge Courses
• Course Availability
• Grade Center Common Questions
• Grade Schemas
• Manage Course Size
• Smart Views 
• Tests
• Hiding/Showing Links 

Copy and/or Merge Courses

1. Can I copy content from a previous semester into my current course?
   • Yes, you can do this in this Blackboard Original - Course Copy Tool in Blackboard Original and Ultra Course
     Note: You can no longer copy content in Blackboard Manager.  
2. How do I merge several sections of a course together so I just have to post information once?
   • This can be done in Blackboard Manager 

Course Availability

1. How do I make my course available for students to see?
   • Open the course in Blackboard Original > look for a small, padlock icon in the top-right corner. If the padlock is closed, the course is Unavailable to students > click the padlock icon to make the course Available to students.
   • Another option is to scroll down the left side menu to Customization > Properties > Set Availability > Make Course Available > Yes > Submit, at the bottom of the page

Grade Center Common Questions

1. Why is my Blackboard Original grade Total column incorrect, is there a Hidden Column?
   • There may be column(s) hidden from instructor view in the Grade Center, but still factoring into the total column. Go to Grade Center > Manage > Column Organization and check to make sure there are no hidden columns.
     • Look for grayed-out columns (hidden) that have points assigned to them. 
     • Un-hide those columns and delete them if not needed.
     • Note: If the column is a Blackboard Original assignment or exam that is deployed in a course content area you must delete the assignment or exam to delete the column in the Grade Center.
   • Another way hidden columns cause problems is if the instructor hides a column from the students. Then the instructor still sees the column in the Grade Center, but the students do not. If the points count towards the Total, the number of points don't make sense for the students.
2. What is a Running Total?
   • During the semester, setting the Total column as a Running Total works well because empty grade cells are not treated as zeroes, i.e. students are not penalized for future assignments. But at the end of the semester, empty grade cells are usually considered zeroes.
   • For final grades, edit the Total column settings to set the running total option to No. This saves you the time of entering zeros into all the empty grade cells.  
3. How do I add Extra Credit assignments in Grade Center?
   • Extra credit assignments should be set to zero Points Possible.
   • The Total column's possible points won't be affected, but any extra credit points awarded will increase the student's total points.
   • Select Edit Column Information to change the Points Possible to zero.

Grade Schemas

1. Can I change the default setting for grading based on scores for A-F?
   • Yes, you can create a customized Grade Schema for your course defining the ranges of scores that produce letter grades A - F.
   • In your Grade Center, choose Manage, then click Grading Schemas and choose Create Grading Schema.
   • Click on the action arrows to the right of Letter to edit the grade schema scores.
   • For more information go to Blackboard Original Grading Schemas.

Manage Course Size

1. Why is the size of my courses important?
   
   • It is recommended to limit course and organization site size to 3 GB and under. This ensures performance and functionality and reduces storage costs.
     • See Best Practice: Limit Course Size - Recommendations for Instructors
2. How do I check the size of a course?
   • Open the Control Panel, click Content, then click on the Course ID.
   • On the Course Content page, click the chevron icon next to the Course Content: [Course ID] header at the top of the page, then select 360° View.
   • Scroll down to Properties and locate the Folder Size to see your course size.

3. Things to check in your course Content Collection:

   • Content below the Control Panel, click on the Course ID:
     • Upload to YuJa, add to course content
     • Delete duplicate and unused files (files with a number in ( ) after the file name are duplicates)
     • Large video files - move video files to cloud storage
     • Large PowerPoint files - Reduce PowerPoint file sizes
     • Optimizing PDFs using Acrobat Pro

Smart Views in Grade Center

1. How can I create a Smart View in the Grade Center to view sections of my merged course?
   • Creating Smart Views is described in  Blackboard Original - Create Smart Views to Filter the Grade Center
2. Can I create a quick link to view my Smart Views?
   • Yes, when creating the Smart Views, check Add to Favorites and it will be displayed in the Grade Center left menu

Tests

1. Can I add questions once a test is available and some or all students have submitted responses?
   • Once a test has been taken by students
     • you CANNOT add more questions, change the number of questions in a question set or change a random block of questions in the test.
     • you CAN correct the wording in a test, errors in assigning right and wrong answers, delete a question which contained errors. 
   • If you change answers and/or possible points Blackboard will regrade all completed student attempts.
2. Can I change points for questions if a test has already been taken?
   • Yes, tests can be regarded  Blackboard Original - Automated Regrading Tests 
3. How can I give student test availability exceptions? Test Availability Exceptions
4. How can I import or export tests, surveys, and pools? Import or Export Tests, Surveys, and Pools

Hiding/Showing Links 

 1. Click the gray, circle ‘Action Link’ next to the link text, which will open a menu of options

 2. If a link is visible, select Hide Link from the options menu, to hide it from student view.

 3. If a link is hidden, it is denoted by a square icon with a diagonal line through it. To unhide a hidden link, which would make it visible to students, select Show Link from the options menu.